"I really showed the fans what I was made of. It wasn’t a walk over. I showed that I got some bite down in me, I’m not afraid to fight, I’m not afraid to stand toe to toe, and I’m certainly not afraid when I see a little blood...I’ve definitely gotten myself a little more acclimated fighting inside of a cage over the last couple of months...my team knows I’m a savage. I’m just a different breed of girl," stated Bellator flyweight and two-division world champion Heather Hardy, who talked about her upcoming clash with Kristina Williams at Bellator 185. Check it out!
PC: Hey Heather, how is it going?
HH: Hey, how are you?
PC: I’m doing great, thanks for asking. How are you?
HH: I’m doing very well, thank you.
PC: Your MMA debut wasn’t very long ago; 4 months or so. You're getting right back in there on Friday night. Was this like a continuous camp for you?
HH: Well, this is the first time, actually, I took like a solid month off. I was in the gym doing my training, but not really keeping up with my diet or my running or my conditioning, so getting my fat ass back in shape was a mission (laughing).
PC: (Laughing) I like the fact that even though you got the finish in your debut, you got quality rounds in and quality minutes stopping Alice Yauger in the 3rd and final round.
HH: Yeah! I think I really showed the fans what I was made of. It wasn’t a walk over. I showed that I got some bite down in me, I’m not afraid to fight, I’m not afraid to stand toe to toe, and I’m certainly not afraid when I see a little blood. I would have liked the fight to go a little differently. I would have given myself a C+ on that one. I had a shaky first round. I really wasn’t happy with how long it took me to adjust, but that’s life. Always room for improvementm, right?
PC: Without a doubt. Even though you have been a boxing champion and obviously you are the ultimate competitor, this was new to you. Any nerves or anxiety heading into your debut?
HH: I was so fine. Leading up to a fight, I’m so business-minded; selling tickets, closing out ticket sales, t-shirts, making sure the fans know about the after party, making weight, where am I going to eat after, and who’s going to pick up my daughter from school. So many things go into it that I really don’t get those nerves until I’m walking into the cage. I remember looking out into the Garden and there is 30,000 people there; the cage is in the middle of where Billy Joel’s piano usually is and I’m like, “What the hell are you doing (laughing)?” So hopefully I don’t have that same reaction. I’ve definitely gotten myself a little more acclimated fighting inside of a cage over the last couple of months.
PC: Most that watched your fight against Yauger walked away pretty impressed with what they saw from you, yet you graded yourself a C+, so there are areas you feel like you could improve in. What can we expect to see this time around from you?
HH: I certainly don’t plan on getting hit as much. I was not happy with how much I got hit. After the fight, so many people were like, “Oh, you were slipping so many punches. You made her miss so many times.” But it’s like, if you cross the street and 30 cars miss you, but one hits you, you still got hit by a car. So I’ve been in the gym making sure I don’t get touched as much in this fight, working on my footwork, my distance, and my timing as well is better this time around.
PC: I think MMA crowds are a little bit different than boxing crowds. We tend to hear booing a little quicker in MMA as opposed to boxing. How important is it for you to toe that line of being exciting and entertaining the fans and being smart and staying within yourself and your game?
HH: I try to do it in the gym. What you practice in the gym is what you bring in your fights. It’s my nature. Even in boxing, Lou DiBella always called me his little Mickey Ward or his little Arturo Gatti. I’m such an in-your-face kind of fighter. I know how to box well, but I’m a fighter. I don’t know if I could get in a cage and not fight if I tried. I never really worry about getting booed. I’m a fighter. In my soul, I’m a fighter.
PC: I know you haven’t abandoned boxing, but with your recent transition to MMA, women’s boxing is actually starting to get some accolades and air time. Do you feel maybe you jumped the gun a little or would you have done this either way?
HH: Like you said, I didn’t abandon boxing. I didn’t make a move. I’m still boxing. I might be back in the ring in January depending on what the first card in the Barclays Center has and who they can offer me. There are a lot of exciting matchups going on right now, so I haven’t abandoned my boxing. I love boxing, but if no good opportunities come up, I’ll stick to MMA until something does come up. I kind of came over and fell in love, so now there is no tearing me out of the cage either.
PC: What was the most difficult part of the transition for you?
HH: You know, it was a mental transition. So many times in the beginning of my sparring, and it didn’t even come to me until after my first fight, when I get on the ground, it’s like, “Okay, now it’s a wrestling match,” or, “Now I’m doing Jiu Jitsu.” Now, I look at it as, “I’m still going to punch the shit out of you, I’m just going to do it laying down.” I learned how to use my strength on different levels. It’s not like, “Oh shoot, now I have to wrestle.” No bitch, now you have to deal with me fighting you, elbowing you, and beating you while you’re that close to me.
PC: That’s a great point because the natural reaction when the fight goes to the ground is, “Okay, time to use that wrestling that I learned,” and depending on positioning, that’s not necessarily true.
HH: Right! It was one of the boxers in the gym that said to me, “Man, if anyone ever grabbed my leg, I would elbow them right in the cheek.” And I was like, “That’s a good idea (laughing).”
PC: You defeated a 9-fight veteran in your debut and we got a glimpse of what you are capable of. Any pressure on you for this one because the standard has been set?
HH: You know what, I didn’t go out of my comfort zone for my first fight. I’m not really worried about keeping up with my first performance. I am who I am and you’re always going to get that out of Heather Hardy. It doesn’t really matter who is in front of me. I’m used to having the pressure on me because so many times, I would be the only fight at the Barclays or the only fight on the big card. So I’m always going to carry that pressure; even more so when it’s boxing because 90% of the time, I would be boxing in front of fans who never saw women box and was going to base their opinion on women’s boxing from what they were going to see from me. I’m up for the challenge. I’m up for it and I’m ready for this. This is my time, my spotlight, and I earned it.
PC: Boxing is all about adjustments and how well you can make adjustments during the course of a fight. Are the adjustments in MMA and boxing similar or is there a major difference in the way that you adjust during the course of each sport?
HH: It’s really similar in the sense that a fight is a fight. If you’re in the street with somebody and they are bullying you or pushing you around, you’re not really thinking about what the rules are or what do I need to do. You’re just going to do what you gotta do to try and win the fight. It’s a matter of changing my mindset. You’re more restricted in a boxing match with the things that you are allowed to do to get the problem solved. This person is doing this, how do I get around it? I have so many more tools in my toolbox when I go inside the cage. I’ve learned how to use that to my advantage and not necessarily as something bad.
PC: The open finger gloves, the smaller gloves, how did you adjust to that because for me, that would probably be the toughest adjustment.
HH: My God, my knuckles hurt so bad after that fight. My hands were purple for 3 days. I’m a boxer, I don’t swing with my hands. I punch with my knuckles. I place my punches. If I want to punch you on the nose, I punch you with my knuckles on the nose. I don’t just throw my hand at it. So when I’m hitting you, my elbow is aligned and I’m driving my fist in your face. You do that repeatedly throughout a fight and you’re going to mess up your hand. I just take a week off from punching anything. I had stitches in my face anyway, so I wasn’t punching anyway.
PC: I spoke with Ana Julaton. She is more than interested in a fight with you down the line. Definitely not overlooking your fight on Friday night, but is she someone that’s on your radar?
HH: You know what, I’ve been reading that in the media. People are like, “Heather Hardy won’t even respond to it.” I have a fight with a girl on Friday night. How disrespectful is that to my opponent to be talking about who I’m going to fight next? October 21st, you want to talk to me about Ana, I don’t give a shit about Ana. I’ll fight Ana whenever they want me to fight Ana, whether it’s in a cage or a boxing ring. It’s like, yeah, that’s going to be an exciting fight no matter where you put it, but...and I’m not saying this to be rude to you.
PC: No, I understand where you’re coming from.
HH: Yeah, I’m just not going to talk about that right now. That would be so mean to my opponent, who I am fighting on the 20th. And I don’t want people to be thinking I’m overlooking this one either. There are tons of good matchups in Bellator right now because they keep signing incredible talent. The 125-pound division is going to be banging in the next year.
PC: Was this a tough decision for you to come over to MMA? Did you have to really sit down with your team and really see if it’s best or were you all in from the beginning?
HH: My team knows I’m a savage. I’m just a different breed of girl. It wasn’t like, “Oh my God Heather, are you sure?” It was like, “Okay!” Because they know, not only do I put in the work, but they know what kind of things I could withstand. They see me fight-fight!
PC: I like this girl. I like the way you think. I look forward to your fight and hopefully we could catch up after your fight. Good luck to you, Heather.
HH: (Laughing) Thank you so much for talking to me tonight.
[ Follow Percy Crawford on Twitter @MrLouis1ana ]